Secrets In Falls City
by Spirits Among Stars
Summary: The Winchester brothers find coordinates in John's journal and detailed information on a failed case. They decide to investigate. The coordinates lead them to Falls City, Nebraska where they meet another Hunter who's been trying to solve it for years. But during the case they find that not everything is what it seems.
1. Chapter 1

Sam was fast asleep in the passenger seat of the Impala while Dean had his eyes fixed on the road towards Falls City. In their father's journal, Dean found an entry about Falls City; apparently he encountered a strange tablet that could posses Humans- if you had the correct ingredients. John never found the materials for it nor did he ever set eyes on it, he saw only pictures. Only two pages were dedicated the City, and from what Dean could tell his father was angry that he couldn't solve it as he had to go back to South Dakota for Sam and Dean. What Dean did know was that his father worked with another Hunter on the case but the contact details of said Hunter were furiously scribbled out in thick black ink, Sam could barely make out the coordinates they needed.

The streetlights flickered as the Impala drove under them. Dean glanced at Sam. He sighed. He forced Sam to drop everything and help him find a lead to locating their father, and when Sam got back, Jess was killed the Sam way Mary was. Poor kid and it wasn't going to get better. Everything had been non-stop since Stanford; it seemed that even more monsters had emerged from the dark just to piss them off. But that means more will die and what was good news to Dean.

* * *

><p>An hour later the brothers pulled up to a dismal looking motel. The whole place looked old, even the neon sign was falling apart. But it was where John stayed during his time there so it couldn't be that bad. Sam wrinkled his nose at the motel and groaned in disgust. "God, I hope we don't stay here long."<p>

"I've stayed in worse." Dean said. "C'mon, let's get our stuff and book in."

The brothers were given keys to their room by a bored landlady who clearly didn't want to be there. She gave them a room on the first floor that was in the shadow of an office block a few miles away. They threw their duffle bags on the individual beds to claim them. Sam took out his laptop and placed it onto the small table. "So who do we need to look for?"

Dean pulled out the journal and flicked through the pages until he found the one he bookmarked. "We need to find a guy called Levitt... Marcus Levitt." Dean replied.

"Okay." Sam said, turning on the laptop. "Anything else?"

Dean paused and skimmed the two pages, "Nope."

Sam sighed and rubbed his chin. "I'll do my best." He looked up at Dean. "You might wanna check out the city, I'll be a while."

Dean beamed and put his gun into his jeans. He closed the room door behind him and strolled along the corridor. Dean could smell something mouldy drifting from a room ahead of him, he coughed a bit, itched his nose and continued to the parking lot. He smiled at the sight of the Impala and entered. His hands gripped the steering wheel and drove out of the lot.

Dean drove around the outskirts of the city and stayed within the vicinity of the motel. But he was hungry and the motel didn't have any food. So he parked at a nearby diner and entered. The smell of burgers and coffee hit him instantly as he opened the door. Dean took in a lungful of air and smiled. A young woman approached wearing a baby blue apron with the diner's logo stitched on. "Hello. Welcome to Vibes Diner." She said with a kind smile. "Just one of you?"

Dean nodded. "Yep, just me."

"Follow me." She led him to one of stools and handed him a menu as grew sat down. "Once you're ready to order, let me know." She smiled and disappeared to waitress the other patrons.

Dean smiled and watched her as she walked away. He opened the menu and gazed down at the array of food. Then his phone rang. "Yo, Sammy." Dean said putting it to his ear.

"So get this," Sam said looking at his laptop. "Levitt died 5 years ago."

Dean sighed frustratingly. "Great(!)"

"But," Sam chirped, "he left behind a daughter. She lives only a few blocks away from the motel."

"Ok," Dean rubbed his chin. "Sam, go and check out the house. I'm gonna get a beer and something to take out. What's the address?" Sam proceeded to give Dean the address which he wrote on a nearby napkin. The older brother hung up the phone and called over the waitress.

"Ready to order?" She asked.

"Sorry change of plan." Dean said. The waitress looked hurt. "Do you do takeouts?" The woman smiled and Dean eventually left with two beers, a beef burger and a salad for Sam.

* * *

><p>The young Winchester stared at the old house in front of him. The building was an old Victorian house. The paint was peeling off but other than that it looked habitable He adjusted the gun in his trousers and moved up the driveway. He stepped onto the creaky porch and approached the front door. He steadily turned the handle; it was unlocked, and stepped in. It didn't smell as bad as Sam hoped, the air was a bit musty but the lack of furniture shocked him. There was a crappy looking television on the floor in what was the living room and the sofas looked a good few years old, even though they were discoloured. The rug underneath was worn away and blackened by the front door. Wooden flooring was exposed along with half of the electricals. The bookcase and photos were immaculate.<p>

Sam dared to step further in and survey the other room to his left. It was a dining room and kitchen, musty burned down except for the table, three chairs, a microwave and oven- all were new. The fridge was on its last legs as well as the tiles and cabinets. Sam treaded into the living room and gazed around. Could someone really live here? A gun cocked behind Sam. It definitely wasn't Dean. "That gun in your trousers, take it out slowly or I'll blow your pretty head off." said a toneless female voice.

Sam nodded and obliged. Doing it slowly and steadily, he took out the gun and put it on the floor. He pushed it to the woman behind him who kicked it far from both their reach. "Who are you and why are you here?"

"My name is Sam Winchester and I'm trying to find the person who lives here."

Sam heard a questioning 'hmm' from behind. "Alright Winchester, you can put your arms down." Sam put his aching arms down.

"Are you Levitt?" Sam asked hesitantly.

There was a pause as she thought about speaking. "I'm not my father if that's what you're asking. Turn around." Sam turned around. "Alexandra Levitt." She said with her dark brown eyes narrowed as she studied Sam. The gun was still aimed at Sam's head. "What do you want with me?"

Sam swallowed, "We found your-"

"We?" Alex asked.

"I'm here with my brother Dean." Alex's eyes narrowed again and gestured for Sam to continue. "We found your Dad's name in our father's journal, along with coordinates to the city."

"Who's your Dad?"

"John Winchester, Hunter."

Alex's eyes widened and she lowered the gun. "I know the name. He worked with my dad, but if you're looking for him I'm afraid your 5 years too late." She put her gun back in its holster and threw her hands in the air. "He's dead." She gestured around the room. "Died in this very house. Right where you standing actually." Sam jumped and hopped to the side. Alex laughed. "I'm joking, he died on a case."

"Oh... Sorry."

Alex shrugged her shoulders. "Eh, you weren't there, but thanks... He was a good man." Alex paused as she remembered her father, she then shook her head. "Come and have a beer." She signalled for Sam to go ahead of her and he obeyed.

He sat on one of the chairs and was handed a beer from a giant pile of ice in the fridge. Alex put a third on the table. Sam gave her a questioning look. "Just in case your brother appears."


	2. Chapter 2

The Impala's engines halted and Dean hurried out of the vehicle. Sam hadn't returned his incisive calls and his instincts were telling him something bad happened- which is partly right. He held his gun in front of him as he ran up the path. He slowed his pace down as he reached the front door. He cautiously opened it and moved in. "Sammy!" Dean shouted when he saw Alex standing in the kitchen. He raised his gun.

Sam's head peered around Alex's torso. "It's alright, Dean," Sam said whilst Alex turned to face the other Winchester. "She's Levitt."

"Alexandra Levitt. Alex." Alex said with a smile. She held out her free hand to shake Dean's but he didn't look convinced; he still had his gun high. Alex rolled her eyes and put her arm back to her side. With her beer she gestured to the spare one on the table. "It's for you." She sat down across from Sam. "Take a seat."

"Dean, sit down. She's friendly." Sam reassured him. Dean lowered the gun but kept his eyes on Alex as he sat down and moved the beer towards him.

"Sam has been telling me about why you're here." Alex took a sip of her beer and leaned back on her chair. "So Dean, what makes you think you can find the tablet? I've tried to locate it but I always hit a dead end."

"We're good at our job."

"So am I!" Alex crossed her arms and gestured as she spoke. "But just because you're the sons of the elusive John Winchester doesn't mean you can solve a case our fathers' spent months on, and what I've spent years trying to resolve, in just a few days."

"With your collective knowledge of the case and our skill of hunting things, then maybe we could finally put an end to this. For all our sakes."

Alex tucked a strand of brown hair behind her ear and rubbed her chin as she thought. "It'll be good to finally rest easy at night knowing I've, at last, gotten rid of that bloody tablet." She sighed. "Okay Winchester, you've got yourself a deal."

The two Hunters nodded and shook hands. "Welcome to the team."

* * *

><p>Dean put John's journal on the old wooden table. He turned to the page in Falls City. He hesitantly handed it to Alex, who started to read through it. Alex managed convince the brothers to stay in the house while they worked on the case, so Sam gave the keys back to the motel woman and moved all their stuff to one of the spare rooms. The room had two old wooden beds and a dying wardrobe. The floorboards creaked but luckily they weren't close to falling apart. The windows were fogged up and the walls were peeling. Dean claimed the bed nearest the door while Sam took the one near the window.<p>

Dean still hadn't warmed to Alex but trusted her enough to not have his brains blown out while they slept. It was something about her that he didn't trust; he just couldn't put his finger on it. Sam, on the other hand, was comfortable around her but still had his guard up as the same thing bothering Dean bothered him. Alex's guard was in overdrive, the last time she meet a Hunter he tried to kill her, so she had to kill him first. She never trusted them, Hunters don't trust anyone, not even their own, and she wasn't going to start now. She gave the Winchesters all the information she had on the tablet and the case their father's were on, they had the job of sieving through the hefty pile of papers and books.

"Why do you still live here?" Dean asked after hours of page turning and reading. His attention was drifting from the mindless pages."It's not exactly the best place for a Hunter."

"It's been my home for 17 years. I can't bear to leave it for a long time, let alone forever."

Dean raised an eyebrow. "No way you're 17."

"No, Winchester, I'm 22!" Alex snapped. "I moved here when I was 5."

Dean held up his hands defensively. "Jeeze, no need to snap at me."

"I'm not used to company."

"That's fine. If you don't mind me asking... where did you live?"

"England." She replied bluntly. She returned her attention back to the journal.

Dean sipped the last sliver of his beer. "Any mom in the picture?"

She shifted uncomfortably in her seat. "Died in a fire a year after we moved here. I don't like to talk about it..."

"Our mom died in a fire." Sam said quietly.

"Yippee do, we've got something in common." She noticed that Sam looked hurt. "Sorry, I need to work on my manners."

"It's alright." Sam shrugged.

"Hunters have the worst luck." She commented with a sigh.

"Tell me about it." Dean replied.

After another hour reading and listening to Dean's attempt to flirt with Alex, Sam' head snapped up from a book. "Alex!" He called to her; she was in the living room.

A "Yo?!" echoed through the house.

"This map," Sam said as Alex peered around the wall. "What is it?"

"It doesn't say?" She enquired, moving to stand behind Sam.

"No." He was looking at an old stained map of some wooded area.

Alex studied it with narrowed eyes. "It's a map of a nearby wood. I've checked it out, there's nothing there."

Sam sighed and rubbed his forehead. Dean walked in with a bag of supplies that the house ran out of; salt, some silverware, beers, food, tea bags for Alex, and more beer. He plonked the bag on the table. "Found anything?"

"Nope." The two replied.

Dean groaned in annoyance, took out a beer and opened it. Some liquid hit the map. "Idiot!" Alex exclaimed. "This stuff is ancient I don't want beer on it." Dean gave her a flat look and took a swig of beer. Alex sat on the chair and put her head on the table. She moaned, "This is so annoying! I told you we wouldn't find anything."

"It's still early days yet." Dean said. This made Alex groan again.

"Ah, shoot!" Sam said. He jumped back in his seat.

"What?" Alex groaned, still with her head on the table.

"There's water leaking down onto the paper."

"It's the crappy pipes, it'll stop soon."

Sam nodded. Then after a beat, "Alex!"

"What?"

"Alex!" Sam said eagerly.

"What!" She snapped her head up to see Sam staring at the map. The water was just resting on it. "Oh." She said. More water dripped onto the map, and when there was a sufficient amount of water on it, the liquid moved to a spot in the top right hand corner.

"What's there?" Dean asked, nodding at it.

"It's an old statue. It's not that special." Dean looked at Sam and gave him a nod to get their things together. "You can't be serious! We're following water?" Alex exclaimed as Sam stood up.

"Got any better ideas?" Dean replied.

There was a pause and a sigh. "Goddamn it, I'll get my stuff."


	3. Chapter 3

The drive was only a few minutes away from the house. Once the trio got to the wood, they stepped out of the Impala and hid their weapons on their person. It was getting dark so they also took flashlights with them- just in case. The only things making noise were the animals, and leaves under their feet as they moved silently though the forest. They walked only a couple of minutes until Alex lead them to the statue. It was a tall, grey, and weathered cross. "Like I said," Alex crossed her arms. "not that special. It's just some old witch thing."

"Witch?" Dean asked. He thought a witch could be behind the tablet and from what he knew already it could certainly be a possibility.

"Not a real witch." Alex said, scuppering Dean's only idea on who could be behind everything. "Innocent women hanged kind of deal here."

Dean nodded in understanding. His eyes scanned the area. "Anything else around?"

Alex pulled a concentrating face, "Um... no. Just this and the trees." The trio looked at the empty forest; time seemed to stand still among the darkening shadows. They shuddered.

"Let's check our surroundings." Dean said after a beat. He ushered out orders, "Sam, you inspect the statue for anything strange. Like witches, Demons- anything supernatural. Alex and I will take on the woods." The other two Hunters nodded and Alex walked into the trees behind them while Dean headed into the woods behind the statue.

Sam moved towards the thick stone cross. He examined the stone carefully; nothing really seemed to stand out. It only acknowledged deaths of women accused if being witches all around the states and wishing that they rest in peace. Sam rubbed his chin thoughtfully. There were no strange looking inscriptions or sigils on the cross nor on the plinth it stood on. It was just another statue. Dean had came up bust too, no supernatural markings on the ground or the trees, so he went back to Sam. Alex too found nothing and this made her increasingly angry then she met back with the brothers.

Night had now fallen among the forest, clouds were rolling in, hiding the moon and it's light so they switched on their flashlights. "This is really pissing me off." Alex growled kicking the ground with her boot. "We've found crap all. There's nothing here!"

"We will find something." Sam reassured her. "There's got to be something."

Alex sighed, "We followed water, Winchester. Did you really think we'd find anything?" Sam opened his mouth to say something but closed it. Alex opened her arms and gestured around the clearing. "Come on then, water! Show me something!" She called into the cold night air. The air remained still, the wind breezed through the trees. Alex shot the brothers an_ I told you so_ expression.

Dean looked around enthusiastically for anything to happen but his face dropped when he realised nothing would happen. Sam looked unhappy. "Come on," Sam said. "Let's get back to the house."

The ride back to the house was so tense you could cut the air with a knife. Alex was silently fuming on the backseat and Sam and Dean were incredibly disappointed, they didn't want to let a fellow Hunter down, or their father. They exited the vehicle and Alex stormed into the house- how foolish she felt for following a blob of dull water to the middle of nowhere. Her hope was rapidly dying. The Winchesters followed far behind to not enrage Alex more. They gave each other silent glances of worry, mainly for Alex's sake. This had plagued her for years and, truth be told, she couldn't wait for it to end- the sooner the better it would end the sooner the better she would feel less depressed.

Alex had stopped in the archway to the kitchen. Confused, the brothers moved to either side of her. Sure enough something had happened when they were gone, an anonymous source had place a small box on the table- it definitely wasn't there when they left. This small box gave Alex the hope to continue on with the case and not to end it all. The trio walked closer and stood over the small box that lay in the middle of the table. The box was russet in colour with silver lining the edges and the lock. It was a several years old judging by the diming of the paintwork. The tiny silver key rested on the top. The three Hunters exchanged curious looks to both themselves and the box, but they didn't want to touch it. They didn't know why, they just didn't want to touch it.

Alex licked her lips nervously. "Dean, you open it." She insisted.

"What?" Dean asked, puzzled. "Why me?"

"You're the oldest one here." She replied quickly.

He sighed, "Okay." His hands hesitantly moved towards to silver key. He fingered it for a moment before picking it up. Dean put it in the lock and turned it with an unlocking click. Dean pushed the lid open. Inside was deep blue velvet with a folded piece of paper resting underneath a gold necklace that had small Topazes in the chain. Dean picked it up with his thumb and forefinger.

Sam leaned in to analyse it while Alex's eyes shifted to the piece of paper. She carefully picked it up and opened it. She didn't recognise the hand as she read it. "Oh." Alex breathed after a moment.

"What is it?" Sam asked, moving his gaze to the off-coloured paper.

"That necklace you're holding Dean," Alex said glancing at the older Winchester. "is part of a ritual used with the tablet."

Dean looked revolted and dropped the necklace. It landed on the table with a _ting_. "What else does the paper say?" Dean uttered, looking at Alex.

"Urm... "This necklace is used with the tablet blah, blah, other components are needed but I'm unsure to what they are." Alex skipped the less important information. "This belonged to Marcus Levitt. Alexandra, he left this in my care and instructed me to give you this when you find help." Alex looked touched. She smiled and looked up, reading the last phrase. "Good luck."

Sam and Dean smiled. "Looks like we have a lead. We should find-"

"No." Alex interrupted Dean. "No, they want to remain unknown."

Dean nodded, "Okay then." He looked at two and put the necklace back in the box. He locked it with the key.

"We should get some sleep." Sam suggested. "It's been a long day and we could do with it."

Alex yawned, suddenly realising how tired she was. It must have been the preoccupation of the busy day that stopped her from feeling drained. "Good idea." She smiled. Alex clasped her hands together. "Y'all know where your room is." Her eyes wandered to the darkness outside and she stifled a yawn. The trio moved from the dining room and made their way to the first floor. They said their goodnights and disappeared behind closed doors.


	4. Chapter 4

Dean and Sam moved their duffle bags from the beds and placed them on the floor. "Dean, what do you think of Alex?" Sam asked pulling down the bed sheet.

"Honestly?" Dean started, "She's alright. She looks like she's got a short temper but I think she's a nice chick." Sam nodded his head slowly. "What is it?"

"There's something I'm not quite sure about her." Sam confessed as he slipped into bed.

"Oh yeah?" Dean raised an eyebrow, sliding into his own. "I've got the same feeling."

"What do we do?"

"Nothing." said the older Winchester. "She'll either tell us, we'll find out ourselves, or someone will let it slip. But for now, we wait."

Sam nodded again and stared up at the ceiling. A damp patch had been repaired a number of times above him and a spider had made itself home in the corner. The young Winchester glanced out of the window and up to the sky. Clouds covered the city and it gradually started to rain. Sam fell asleep to the patter of raindrops on the window.

* * *

><p>When Sam awoke Dean was not in his bed, the bed was made however but he wasn't in the room. Sam kicked off the sheets and stepped onto the floor. He tightened his shoes and ambled out of the room after he tidied his bed. Alex's bedroom door was closed and no doubt locked to keep prying eyes out of her business. Sam checked the rest of the first floor silently before heading downstairs.<p>

He turned the corner into the dining room and saw Alex snoozing face down on a hardback book with a blanket draped over her shoulders. "Sammy!" Dean hissed, hushed from behind his young brother. Sam spun around and Dean pulled him into the living room and out of earshot of the sleeping Alex.

Sam pointed to the dining room and was about to speak when Dean held up a finger to stop him. "I think she was down here all night. I found her sleeping there." said Dean, hushed still. "I didn't want her to get cold so I put the quilt over her." Sam looked as if he wanted to speak. "Anything else, Sammy?"

"When I woke up, you were gone."Sam replied keeping the same volume as Dean. "How long were you up- have been up?"

"Only two hours, besides I didn't wake you because you looked like you were enjoying the dream you were having." Dean smirked but Sam thumped his arm, hard. Dean looked mockingly hurt and rubbed it.

Sam sighed. "She was up reading on the necklace, wasn't she?"

Dean nodded and hummed in confirmation. "I think she's halfway through her third book."

"Well I was until I fell asleep." Alex's voice was quiet but alarmed the brothers causing them to jump and turn instantly. She tugged the blanket around her shoulders and leaned against the archway. "Morning." She rubbed the sleep from her eyes. "And yes, I was up all night reading. But," Alex said holding up a finger, "I found something."

The brothers' faces lit up. "What?"

Alex smiled and gestured for them to follow her. They walked into the dining room and Alex sat down, brushing creases from her green shirt. She pointed to the page and paragraph. "This particular necklace is part of a satanic ritual that causes the wearer to become super powerful but wearer must have three other ingredients before it can be completed."

"And the tablet?" Sam enquired.

"That's the main mojo maker, if you have the tablet, the necklace, some Human bones and a Wolf heart then you get unlimited power." Alex looked up at the two. "It's some pretty potent stuff, do it wrong and the wearer will die. The gruesome side effects include increased hunger for Human flesh- lungs, heart, brain; you name it, enhanced vulnerability to Demon possession and my personal favourite explosive blood vessels- like proper volcanic ruptures, blood everywhere."

"Nice..." Sam said, disgusted, with a wrinkled nose. "What kind of Human bones?"

"Decomposing, older the better."

"How do we kill it?"

Alex paused and looked back at the paragraph. "I dunno." She rubbed the back of her neck. "I need to keep reading."

"Oh no you don't!" Dean stated. He grasped her arm and forced her stand. "You are going to sleep while Sam and I continue this." Sam stepped out of the way and Dean practically shoved Alex to the stair. She grunted and grudgingly went to her bedroom. "Sammy, keep an eye on her." Dean said quieter. Sam nodded and noiselessly moved upstairs. Dean took out a beer from the ice and opened it. As he sat down he placed it on the table. He ran a hand down his face, he sighed. His eyes scanned the small box that hadn't moved. He reached over and opened the box with the key. The necklace had gone. Dean's eyes widened with realization and he bolted upstairs.

"What is it?" Sam asked as Dean blurred past him on the stairs. Sam followed Dean along the hallway.

The older Winchester burst into the bedroom. It was empty. The bed was creased and the blanket dangled out of the window. They rushed to it and leaned out. Dean growled and kicked the wall.

"She jumped from here?" Sam gasped.

Dean shook his head. "It looks like she climbed down pipe."

"But why would she go?" Sam looked to his brother for answers.

"She's got the necklace. She was lying when she didn't know how to kill it." Dean ran hand through his hair and sat on the bed. "I bet she knows who has the tablet, she's gonna get herself killed."

"So what do we do?" Sam asked crossing his arms.

Dean shook his head again, "I don't know." He sighed. "What the hell is going on here?" Dean said, frustrated. He cracked his neck and stared up at the ceiling.


	5. Chapter 5

Out of the corner of his eye, Dean spotted something behind Sam, for a moment he stared at the space behind his brother. Sam noticed Dean's gaze and followed it, turning his head. "What do you see?" Dean stepped past Sam and stroked the wall. A wooden panel tilted slightly under the light pressure. Sam saw it too. Dean's hand slid to the top of the panel, his nails dug into the wall and he yanked the wood off. Sitting on a pristine ledge was a large metal case.

"Bingo." Dean muttered.

He carefully maneuvered the box out of the hole and put it on the bed. He looked for a key and found it taped to the other side of the wood panel. They opened it cautiously. Inside was neatly kept with everything neatly packed and placed in their respective positions; nothing was marginally out of place. Sam and Dean glanced at each other. Laying in the box where a number photo albums, scattered family pictures, jewellery, other weapons, Alex's own Hunter's journal, more ammunition, plenty of books to do with all kinds of myths and supernatural creatures, and some smaller boxes and cases. Dean reached in and pulled the largest small box and placed it on the bed next to the metal case. This time there was combination lock so he and Sam ignored it. Next Sam reached for one of the older looking photo albums. It was filled with wedding photos. A dark haired man in his mid-20s stood next to a red haired woman in a beautiful white dress. They looked elated. The rest of the pages had plenty of pictures from that day. Sam took out a photo. On the back it read: _"Our wedding day. December 1st 1981. Groom- Marcus. Bride- Renée. Mr and Mrs. Levitt." _The following albums were full of school pictures- from English to American schools, general everyday pictures but they stopped abruptly after the date of the fire, which was more recent than Alex had said.

"They were really happy, there's much nothing to hide." Sam said fiddling with an album cover. "They're just a normal family; taught her how to ride a bike, how to walk, Christmas, birthdays."

"Except Marcus taught his daughter how to shoot at the age of 5."

"So not much different from us." Sam said quietly looking down a little. Then he looked up and continued, "And then it just stopped after the fire, it must have really devastated them." Sam stared at a photo of a young Alex beaming next to her father and mother who were all covered in dough and food colouring. Another similar looking one had them covered on paint after moving in to a much younger looking house. Sam looked around, "This place really went to hell after the fire."

"There's nothing else here." Dean said with frustrated sigh. The Winchesters put the albums and boxes back into the case. In the corner of his eye, Dean spotted something in the case. He followed his instincts and extracted a tiny piece of paper from a small hole in the side. He narrowed his eye as he thought. His eyes suddenly lit up with realisation and he took out the box they first removed from the case. He put in the combination. "Ah ha!" He said triumphantly as the locked clicked open. Sam leaned over and watched his brother open the box. The two looked at each other with expressions of astonishment.

* * *

><p>Alex hid behind a conveniently placed piece of metal. She swallowed hard and peered slowly around the edge. "Where are you, Alex?" A chilling voice taunted. "Come out, come out." Alex tried to keep her increased breathing quiet and low but she was frightened so it didn't obey. She rubbed her bleeding forehead and rubbed her hands. She noticed her gun lying where the creature kicked it but she was on the other side of the room. "I won't hurt you." The voice taunted again.<p>

"I'm going to stop you." Alex said bravely behind a wall of fear.

"You won't." She heard a chilling chortle. "I have twice the power of you, Human."

Alex chuckled, _you have no idea, _she thought. "Listen here. You may be a Demon but you sure as hell aren't twice the power of me. The only thing special is your immortality," Alex eyed her gun, "which I will soon end."

The Demon circled around and silently moved towards her hiding place. "My dear, I don't think so." The Demon's hands crept over the top of the metal.

Alex stiffened, grabbed a handful of gravel and threw it into the Demon's face. While it reeled back, Alex sprinted to her gun and shot the Demon full of rock salt. "Ow!" It shouted pissed.

Alex shot it again but it shrugged it off and strode towards her. "Shit!" The Demon flung Alex to the wall on the other side of the building. She hit it with a loud grunt and landed hard on the floor.

The Demon knelt down and ripped the necklace off Alex's neck. "Thank you." and with that the Demon left.

Alex huffed out a lungful of air, which blew away from grit on the ground; she sucked in air through her teeth and sat up with a grunt. She took a moment to catch her breath and for the pain to subside. Alex inhaled deeply as she stood up; her hand immediately grasped her shoulder when she flinched. "Ah, damn it," she muttered, "dislocated shoulder." She gritted her teeth. After some intense pain she managed to relocate it, she rotated her shoulder to double check it was okay. Alex sighed with a satisfactory smile and headed out of the old silo, picking up her dropped knife and gun.

She moved towards the forest still testing out her shoulder, it was nothing to serious. The Hunter reached a tall tree nearest the edge and kneeled down. She removed a rock from a pile of smaller ones and dug under where she found the rocks. She kept digging until she located a wrapped object. Alex grinned happily, lifted it out of the muddy hole and took away the cloth. She held a small, ancient clay tablet with strange inscriptions engraved on it. She put beside her and, with the same rock, dug a bit further down. She retrieved a small map and filled in the hole with the rocks. Alex wiped her brow. "Now, how am I going to tell the Winchesters?" She asked rhetorically.


	6. Chapter 6

Alex stood outside her house with tablet in hand. She breathed in deeply, this could go one of two ways; they'd go crazy that she was gone or they would welcome her back, Alex thought the former.

Sam sat in the dining room reading again. He heard the sound of gravel underfoot and was at the window before he knew it. "Dean!" Sam shouted teasing back the curtains. "She's back." Dean stormed down the stairs with a knife and his gun in his jeans. "Go easy!" Sam exclaimed following his brother out.

"Winchesters, I've-" Alex's eyes widened at Dean and moved back. Dean revealed his knife, "Dean, what are you doing?!" She retreated back but Dean trapped her in between himself and the Impala.

Alex swallowed staring at the knife, "Dean?"

Sam stood a step back from Dean. "Give me your arm." Dean demanded coldly.

"Why?" She questioned just as coldly.

"Do it!" The Winchester shouted. Alex flinched as he shouted and produced her arm without any further hesitation. Dean gripped it tightly and held up the knife in between his eyes. Alex stared at it. "This is a silver knife." He said scarily calm. She swallowed. "Are you a Shapeshifter?" He drawled with fire in his eyes. "This is your only chance to say something."

Alex kept her mouth shut. After a beat she breathed in shakily, "Dean-" Dean growled at her for not saying anything else. He violently pushed up her sleeve. Alex gave the brothers a pleading look. "Please, don't." She spoke brittle. "Sam. Dean-"

Dean shook his head regretfully and put a deep cut on Alex's arm. She hissed as the silver burned and her other hand clutched the bleeding wound. "Where's the real Alex, Shifter?!" Dean barked shaking the knife. "Did ya kill her and take on her form to kill her family?!"

"Dean," Alex mumbled.

Dean's eyes were full of anger while Sam was sadly calm. He was disappointed more than anything that she didn't tell him. "Well?!" The older asked loudly.

"Alex is me, I am her." Alex replied giving him full eye contact. "I was born November 5th 1983. I moved to America when I was-"

"No!" Dean shouted, and in the heat of the moment, he produced his gun.

Sam gasped and tried to intervene by getting in between them, "Dean!"

"No, Sam! Shifters can take on the memory of the living." Dean stated. "Where is she?!"

"Here!" Alex shouted back, survival raging through her veins. She pointed to herself. "I am her! I was born a Shifter! My father was a Shifter and my mother was Human! She accepted him for what he was! This is why I never reveal myself, it always ends like this!"

"What do you mean always?" Sam asked trying to move Dean, but he was rooted to the spot and his gun.

"I've meet many Hunters before and most find out about me. They never look past the fact that I'm a Shapeshifter, they just want to kill me!"

"That's because you kill!" Dean retaliated.

"No! I don't." said Alex firmly. "My father taught me to only kill monsters- that includes my own kind but they all deserve it because they kill innocent people." Alex took a deep breath. "I kill the guilty."

Now Sam had managed to move fuming Dean further back but the gun was still trained on Alex's forehead. "Have you killed Humans?" The young Winchester asked calmly.

Alex nodded and reiterated, "Only the guilty." Dean scoffed and rolled his eyes.

"Will you kill us?" Sam questioned calmly.

"If you don't put the gun down." Alex eyed the steady gun.

Sam then turned to Dean who had fire in his eyes. He spoke calmly, "Let's hear her out then we can decide what to do. Alright?" Sam's hand moved to face the gun down.

Dean's eyes flickered to Sam then to Alex where he held a cold stare. "Ok, but I've got my eye on you."

Sam stood between the two as they marched up to the house. It felt like they were walking forever through the thick mud. Sam leaned past Alex and opened the door; Alex quickly went to sit down in the living room while Sam disappeared to get the first aid box.

Dean stood beside of the sofa and fiddled with the gun, Alex swallowed nervously. "Dean-" She muttered.

"No." He said, firm and disappointed. "Why didn't you tell us?"

"Everyone acts like this." She bit looking Dean in the eyes. "I knew you had some trouble with a Shifter not long ago and they did 'kill' you."

Dean raised an eyebrow, "Clearly, I'm alive. How'd you know?"

"The news mostly, I like keep an eye on Shapeshifters just in case they decide to go rouge and I need to put a stop to them." Sam returned with the first aid box and speedily patched up Alex's arm. When he finished he placed it on the floor. Alex rubbed the bandage, "How did you guys find out?"

Dean produced a small sliver of paper from his pant pocket. "We found a locked box. We were going to put everything back but we found the combination." Dean gave her the photo, she didn't believe his excuse. "We found all sorts of photos like that one."

Alex stared down at the rejected photo. It was her and her father with retinal flares, they were rare in photos but did happen. She had tossed it into the fire to get rid of the evidence that condoned her being a Shapeshifter but had second thought and rescued it. "But I guess I can't blame you for looking through my stuff when you thought I'd done a runner." She twiddled her thumbs.

"What did happen anyway?" Sam asked curiously.

"I went in my room and the demon behind this all was waiting for me," Dean shifted on his feet. "It knew I had the necklace, so it captured me."

"Why didn't you shout?" Sam asked again. "I was right behind you."

"Knocked me out," Alex said, "she wasn't too happy that we scuppered her plans for complete power. But I did find something while she was busy tossing me around- I managed to hide it."

The brothers looked intrigued. Alex smirked and pulled out the tablet she had been hiding on her person. "That still doesn't excuse the fact that you're a Shifter."

"Good!" said Alex handing it over to Sam but looking at Dean. "I was born this way and I sure won't be turning Human any time soon. Live with it." Dean narrowed his eyes at the Shapeshifter. "You trusted me and as soon as you found out you went ape-shit. Does my species really matter, and you'll continue to trust me, or will you not look beyond that and kill me?"

Dean grunted.

"Trust is trust no matter who you are."

Dean looked Alex in the eyes and searched for something to trust, his last Shifter encounter didn't exactly go well. "As soon as we're done here, we don't want to see you. Ever."

Sam looked at Dean with a shocked expression. "Dean!"

"No, it's alright, Sam. Dean doesn't look beyond the retinal flares and the silver." She wanted Dean to feel really bad. He was just another in a long line of Hunters who can't trust anyone bar themselves, Alex was getting sick of it. "He's all Hunter." She stared at Dean. "When we're done, we are done. You won't hear or see me again."

"Deal." Dean said.

"Deal."

Sam spoke after too much silence, "So how do we kill the ritual?"

Alex shifted her attention to Sam; she put the photo in her jacket pocket and stood up. "We destroy the tablet and we're done."

"What do we kill it with?" Dean asked. His full attention was to Sam.

Alex pulled out the small map from another one of her pockets. She folded it out and placed it on the coffee table. "Our demon friend dropped this while she was pummelling me. I managed to bury it and the tablet while she was trying to find me." Alex pointed to a strange looking symbol. "We kill it what that."

Dean scanned the old map with his eyes. It had the location of all the supplies you would need to complete the ritual and gain super strength and the like. "And there is where we have to go?"

Alex nodded her head. "Yep. And it's only 10 minutes away."

"Let's pack up our stuff and get going." Sam said.

Dean folded the map away and put it on one of his pockets. Alex shot him a confused look. "Excuse me, Dean. I found the map, I should have it."

"I'm driving." Dean stated.

"I can give directions." Alex snapped.

The two stared at each other until Sam intervened. "Dean, give me the map."

"Fine," Dean grunted. "But you're staying here."

Alex flushed with anger. "What?!"

Dean gave her a look, "You heard me."

"This case has been in my life for longer than I care to remember. I'm not staying when I finally get a chance to finish it!" Alex shouted. "I'm coming with you!"

"No, you're-!"

Sam interrupted and shot both an unhappy look, "You are. Get in the Impala."

The two bitter Hunters stared at each other all the way to the Impala with a none-too-pleased Sam walking behind them. Alex sat in the back while Dean and Sam sat in the front. The tension again was thick with anger and bitterness. Sam leaned on his fist. This was going to be a long ride.


	7. Chapter 7

After an excruciating 10 minute drive, the trio made it to the section on the map as directed to by Sam. Sam swore the ride was never going to end with Alex and Dean's contest on who could out angrily huff the other. And when the time came to get out of the car Sam was over the moon and hurried out. Dean and Alex hastily got out of the Impala and hurried their way down an overgrown path. They nearly tripped over fallen branches and sticking out vines as they ran. Dean had his in front of him as did Sam and Alex, they could never be too careful on what could be around the corner. Sam occasionally checked the map to make sure that they were heading in the right direction, they could easily get lost in here.

Eventually the trio made it to a little shack in the middle of the dense forest. It was old, wooden and rotten. The roof slanted in to the shack and the tiles, that were left, slid off the roof every so often. The shack was surrounded by trees and soon was to become part of the flora judging by the amount of trees and bushes sprouting out of the woodwork and ground. Dean took out a knife and cut away at the branches to get to the ancient door. Once there, he grasped the rusted bronze handle firmly and pushed open the door. It creaked loudly.

Something behind it blocked the door so Dean shuffled his way in, partially, and attempted to shove away a stone stab that blocked the door with his foot. He only pushed it a few inches but it just enough for him to manoeuvre through. Sam and Alex followed Dean into the shack that was barely big enough to fit the three of them.

They lined up against the back wall of the shack as it was the only area big enough to fit them. "Is that it?" Dean asked looking at the slab. Everything looked normal, even the slab that seemed to have once belonged to the roof.

Alex studied the stone. It was plain, weathered, grey, and didn't look out of place. There were no strange markings on the stone, only the muddy foot print left by Dean. "I'm guessin' we have to look under it." Alex said, looking over the stone. "It'll take us all to shift it."

"We're gonna have to give it one hell of a push." Dean commented. "Or we can get our Shifter friend to lift it." Dean looked at Alex.

"No way. Do you see how heavy it looks?"

Just as Dean was about to open his mouth to say something, Sam cut him off. "We'll all lift it. On 'lift' we lift it." The three of the knelt down and each grabbed a side of the slab. They planted their feet and when Sam shouted "Lift!" they hauled it off the ground and shoved it against the wall opposite. For a moment the mouldy wall shook under the weight, and creaked, but it soon steadied itself. Underneath the stone was a rusted silver grate in the wood floor. Sam bent down and lifted it right off its hinges, it was old anyway, it was going to come off sooner or later. The trio leaned over the hole in the floor.

Alex produced a flashlight from her rucksack and shone it into the blackness. "I can't see the bottom. Or the swordy dagger thing."

Dean picked up a piece of tile and dropped it down the hole. After a moment of silence they heard it smash at the bottom. "Crap that is deep." Dean said with a whistle.

"Very deep." Alex repeated. She swallowed and looked at the brothers beside her. "Who wants to go down there, risk breakin' their neck, and retrieve our dagger?"

Sam and Dean looked at each other and then back at Alex with odd smiles. "We'll need someone who won't get hurt falling, or climbin', down there." Dean said.

"Someone who is fast and can easily get back up." Sam added with a smirk.

Alex held her hands up, "Okay, ok. I'll do it." She shuffled to the edge and stared down at the black. She quickly looked at the Winchesters. "If I die, I'm comin' back to haunt you guys." and with that she jumped into the gaping hole.

"Dude," Dean said to Sam. Sam looked at him. Dean eyed the slab.

"Dean, no." Sam said firmly. "Can't you at least get along? At least until we're done here?"

Dean sighed, "Fine... For you, Sammy."

Suddenly there was a loud dull thud followed by a quieter "Son of an arsehole!"

Sam leaned over the hole, "You alright down there?"

"Yeah!" Alex called back, Sam saw her wave the flashlight at him, "I just lost my grip, that's all!" Alex glanced up and squinted her eyes at the light emanating from above Sam. "Sam, you look like you've just came from Heaven with that light behind you."

She heard Dean laugh and Sam say "Thanks." quietly. Then a louder "What do you see?" followed.

Alex shone the light around her at the muddy walls and the floor. Just above her head was a giant tree root that was somehow leaking water and a chunk of silver, from the grate, protruded from the side. Below her was only mud and rusted parts of the grate that had fallen through, it didn't look like that the dagger would be there. "To be honest, Sam, not much." Alex called up. She kicked some mud, "Just mud, mud, a bit of tree and more mud with the occasional side-order of rocks."

Sam sighed and rubbed his forehead. "Look around for something dagger-like you never know where it might hide."

"Will do." Alex said back. She sighed and spun her head around the hole. Like she said mud was everywhere, even under her short nails, in her hair and all over her boots. She kicked a stone and rubbed the back of her neck, "Stay optimistic Alex. You'll find something." She told her not-to-confident self before a sigh. She kneeled down and searched the ground for anything strange, she looked under the small rocks, in the wall and everywhere else but alas she found nothing. Alex stood up and shouted suddenly, "Crap!"

"What is it?" Sam hollered immediately. His and Dean's heads appeared over the opening as shadows with the light behind them

"I nearly impaled myself in a bloody root!" She answered quickly glancing up. "Stupid thing is right above me." She flicked it with her finger.

"Ignore the tree," Dean said to her, "find the dagger."

Alex rolled her eyes and mumbled under her breath, "What do you think I'm doing?" She grabbed the root and snapped it from the wall. She threw it up and out and it nearly hit Dean square in the face. "Watch out!" Dean ducked. The root only just missed his head. It sailed through a tear in the wall and landed on the ground outside. "Sorry!" Alex shouted with a couldn't-care-less tone. She rolled her eyes at him. Something reflected light in the corner of her eye, "What?" she turned slightly and leaned towards a small gap in the mud where she had ripped out the root. Alex narrowed her eyes to focus and study it. "Son of a bitch." She said slowly. Alex looked up, "Either of you guys bring a shovel?" She asked loudly.

Dean's head appeared with a confused look on his face. "What?"

"There's something in the wall down here!" Alex shouted, punching the wall, "I need a shovel or something to dig with to get to it. Did ya bring one?"

Sam looked at Dean and shook his head. "Nope, didn't bring one!" Dean called down. "You'll have to use your hands."

"Great." Alex replied sarcastically. She rolled up her sleeves and cracked her neck, "I'm used to doing people's dirty work but this is ridiculous." She said mainly to herself.

Whilst Alex dug at the wall with her hands, Sam and Dean paced in what little room they had, wondering if they had anything to help Alex along with the digging. They hadn't brought a shovel because they thought they wouldn't need it. They knew it probably wouldn't be easy to get to but it never crossed their minds that they would need a shovel. Alex cursed under her breath as the hole she was digging slowly got bigger and bigger. And soon it was big enough for her to reach through she yanked out a long rusted rectangle case. "I'm coming up. I think I may have found it." She blew off the top layer of dirt and shoved it down her trousers. Alex cracked her knuckled and latched them onto the wall. She put on foot in the hole and clambered up the sides until she was out.

"Where is it?" Sam asked as Dean helped her out of the hole.

Alex smirked and pulled out the case from the back of her jeans. She gave it to Sam. Her eyes widened as she realised how dirty she looked, "Boy, do I need a shower." She glanced at her hands and brushed muck of herself.

"Let's get this open." Dean said. He took the box from Sam and impatiently yanked it open.

The trio looked down at a pristine blood-stained silver dagger. They smiled at each other. Soon this would all end.


	8. Chapter 8

Dean took out the tablet and placed it onto the floor. The sun was setting and made for a great backdrop for the end of the case. Alex removed the dagger from the box and twiddled with it in her hand. "This is it." She said gazing at the dagger. "All our work... ends here." A smile spread over her face, she breathed "Finally."

"Go ahead, Alex." Sam said, gesturing to the tablet. "It's all yours."

Alex looked thankful at Sam. This case plagued her for years and it was finally coming to an end. She found a firm grip on the hilt and smirked, raising it above her, "Goodbye, bitch!" the dagger crashed down on the table, shattering it into pieces. Alex sighed triumphantly, the ending might not have been that all climatic but it was over.

"Now," Dean said, shattering the moment. "Our deal."

Alex pulled an annoyed face, "Really, Dean? You couldn't let me have this moment? And I know, I haven't forgotten."

"Good." Dean folded his arms.

"At least have a celebratory beer before you hit the road." Alex proposed. "It is the end of a case our fathers never finished."

Sam looked at Dean with a_ say-yes_ expression. Dean sighed and nodded, "Fine. But one beer and we're off."

Alex nodded. "Okay."

After a long and slightly more cheerful ride than before the trio arrived back at the house. Alex cracked open three beers from the ice and gave two to Sam and Dean. They stood around the table with the sword in the middle. "To the end of a long-ass case." Alex toasted.

"And to, hopefully, a new friend." Sam added. Dean hesitated as Sam and Alex toasted with their beers but Dean joined in, in hope of not spoiling in the moment like he did back at the shack.

Shortly after they drank their beers Sam and Dean gathered their belongings together and stood outside on the driveway. Dean put away their duffle bags whilst Alex and Sam exchanged phone numbers in case of emergencies. "I guess I'll see you around, Sam." Alex said with slight smile. "It was fun... ish." They shook hands, "Thanks for helping me finish the case. You guys helped to lift a huge burden and put my dad's memory finally at ease."

Sam nodded. "It's our- let's be honest, mainly my- pleasure." Sam turned and glared at Dean. He nodded at Alex, "Shake hands, dude."

Dean stubbornly shook his head as he leaned against the Impala.

"Dean-!"

Alex touched Sam's arm. "Don't worry, it's alright, Sam. He's just another ignorant Hunter who can't open his eyes and trust someone who's not human." Alex smiled with dead eyes at Dean. "See ya."

"Come on, Sammy. Let's go." and with that the Winchesters got into the Impala drove off down the street.

Alex sighed and ran a hand through her hair. "So long boys." She waved a little. She wandered back into the empty family home and opened a fresh beer. She kicked her legs onto the table and leaned back in a chair. She sighed again. Everything was back to normal. The house had no unwanted guests, noises or otherwise. It was quiet and that was just how she liked it. Don't get her wrong, she enjoyed company but only occasionally and when she knew the visitors. She wasn't a huge fan of Hunters popping up in town on a case or just passing through because she didn't want them to find out about her being a Shapeshifter even though the usual outcome would be the Hunters never finding out. Except this time. Alex thought she shouldn't have invited them to stay after all or even come out to Sam. Oh well, she shouldn't go back now.

Alex sipped at her beer. She then chuckled,_ it's all over. It really is... I can't believe it. Strangers helped me finish something started years ago. Thanks boys, I guess I needed a hand after all._ Alex drank the last of her beer and grabbed another from the ice. She sat back down on the chair and kicked up her legs on the table. She folded her arms with the beer on her chest and rested her chin on the rim. She heaved a sigh, "What do I do know?" She had an idea. Alex necked the beer in one and jumped to her feet. "Shower!" She sang. She hadn't had one since Sam and Dean arrived which was a few days ago, she definitely needed one.

The Impala's headlights lit up the road as they drove in the dark and Sam was itching to ask Dean why he was so pissed at Alex being a Shapeshifter. Yeah, their first encounter in St. Louis didn't go well at all but that didn't mean all of them were bad, right? Sam absentmindedly tapped his fingers on his lap. He took a deep breath, "Dean, so what if she's a Shifter?" He asked, looking at Dean. "I mean, yeah, St. Louis didn't go well and the Shifter nearly killed us but it doesn't mean they're all bad."

Dean scoffed and shook his head. "You haven't been doin' this as long as me, Sammy. They're all bad."

"Are you sure?" Sam asked. "She didn't kill me when we had the gun to my head."

Dean sighed frustratingly. "Sam, listen-"

"No, Dean, _you_ listen. Before we found out about her you were flirting away like you always do, then bang! the second you know she's a Shifter everything you liked about her shots out of the window."

"I know what they can do, Sam!" Dean exclaimed. "Shifters aren't good, Sam! No supernatural being is! Hunters and monsters are natural enemies; we kill them before they kill us."

Sam sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "If she wanted us dead she would've done it days ago." Sam looked at Dean. "You really need to get over the fact that she is a Shifter. Everything changes the moment you know who they really are. Dean, you need to accept that she is what she is and nothing can change that."

Dean gritted his teeth and tightened his grip on the steering wheel.

"Dean. At least give her a chance. Don't dismiss her straight away because you don't know what she's really like. She might actually be nice. Sure, she's hostile, but we're Hunters she has the right to be. We should kill her but we won't." Sam stressed the last word, Alex was nice despite the fact she needed to soften towards them, but she didn't want Dean to shoot her. Perhaps both Dean and Alex could shed their prejudices together.

Dean thought about this for a long time. He really didn't want to admit that Sam was but he was. Dean tried very hard to ignore his instincts when he found out about Alex at first. He was going to kill her, it's what Hunters do, they kill monsters. But, again, it was Sam that stopped him, he was right. Dean's gut feeling fought against all the fibres in his person that were agreeing with his brother. Dean tensed his jaw and sighed. He gave in. Maybe not all monsters are bad. Maybe he would let his Hunter instincts side just once but keep his guard up just in case. "Ok." Dean said slowly, was he really going to say this? "Okay, I'll give 'er a chance." Dean looked at Sam with a hard look, "But if she does anything to hurt anyone... she's dead."

Sam nodded, it was the closest he was going to get, "Okay, that's fair enough. Just let me know if you ever do decide to shoot her."

Dean nodded and continued driving.

Alex dried her hair and put on her clothes. It may be night but a Hunter is never off duty. She tied on her boots and grabbed a beer from downstairs. She returned to her room and jumped onto the bed. Alex sipped the beer and starred at the wooden ceiling. Before long her eye lids drooped closed and fell asleep.

Alex heard a noise and her eyes snapped open. A shadowy figure straddled her with a cold hand over her mouth. Her screams and shouts were muffled under the hand and she writhed under the weight. A knife reflected moonlight and Alex's eyes were drenched with fear. She screamed again and bit the hand hard. She kneed the Demon in the crotch and rolled off the bed. She sprinted out of the room grabbing her phone and gun as she ran past them. She fumbled with her phone as she stumbled down the stairs. "Get back here now!" Alex yelled down the phone at Sam. He had to move the phone away from his ear.

"Alex, what is it?" Sam asked worriedly. Dean nodded for him to put it on speaker.

Alex skidded around the corner and hid in the kitchen. "The Demon bitch is alive!" She hissed trying to keep her breathing calm. "Alive! In my house!"

Dean's heart raced and immediately skidded a U turn in the Impala and raced back to Falls City. "What's happening?" He asked during the turn.

"It didn't work!" Alex whispered bypassing the question entirely. "She looks super powerful!" Her heart thumped against her rib cage. "This isn't good."Alex peered around the counter she was hiding behind. She saw a foot step into the room. She quickly leaned back on the side. She wouldn't be able to reach the back door in time. She didn't have any spare bullets left, she only had the six. Every shot would count.

"Come out, little thing." The Demon teased in a strange deep voice.

Alex breathed hard but she tried to keep it quiet.

Sam and Dean listened intently, daring not to speak in case the Demon would hear. They could hear Alex's rapid breathing and the faint steps of the enemy. The brothers heard Alex take a deep breath and jump to her feet. Bullet one, gone. Missed. Number two a miss. A string of swears, a rattling door handing and bullets three and four gone. Judging by the noises Alex dodged the Demon and raced for the front door. Bullet five hit but didn't slow it down. Alex screamed as the Demon picked her up by the throat. The phone dropped onto the floor. Shot 6 was fired into its head but that did nothing. Alex clawed at the invisible hands around her neck.

"Alex?" Sam asked staring intensely at the phone in his hand.

Alex coughed and choked. With a flick of the Demon's wrist Alex was thrown against a far fall and crumbled to the ground.

"Alex?" Dean asked quietly.

The brother's heard ruffling as the phone was picked up. "I'm sorry, Alex can't come to the phone right now," The Demon said with a laugh. "She's as good as dead." The Demon moved towards the unconscious Alex. "But feel free to come and find her, before I end her." It taunted. "Bye, Winchesters."

The phone clicked off and Sam stared at the cell. Dean's ears fixed on the disconnected tone. He put his foot to the floor.


	9. Chapter 9

Dean kicked open the front door and he and Sam charged in. Darkness flooded into the house. They searched the house top to bottom but didn't find Alex or the demon anywhere. The whole house looked like a bomb had gone off. All the draws, cabinets had been totally ransacked. The demon must have been looking for the dagger. Alex's room was the worst everything was everywhere except for her, she was nowhere to be found. The only clue they had about her was a significant blood trail leading out to the forest but ended a few trees in. The brothers regrouped in the house in the messy living room. Time was of the essence.

"Sam, see if you can find the dagger. The demon probably took it with her but we need to be sure. I'll look for any extra ammo and guns."

Dean managed to find two more guns and a huge box of ammunition under a floor board in Alex's room. But Sam, on the other hand, found that the demon had indeed stolen the dagger that he guessed was hidden somewhere in Alex's room. "We've got find her." Sam said fidgeting. "Where the hell would she be?"

"What about where she found the map and tablet?" Dean suggested.

"Yeah, but we don't know where that is." Sam replied. He paused thoughtfully for a moment, "Oh!" Sam quickly folded out the map he took out from his back pocket. Dean gave Sam a look of surprise when he saw that his brother still had it. "I forgot I still had this." He intended to give it back but Dean was desperate to leave so he forgot to give it back.

"So what's in the vicinity of the forest? They've had plenty of time to get ahead of us." Dean studied the map closely. The house was right in the bottom middle of the map. There were only two places they could go and one looked far too small to hold super powered demon and all the ingredients for the ritual. The other was an old barn not too far away. "Let's go." Dean said eagerly. He was ready to end this for real. They packed up the map and hurried out.

* * *

><p>Alex's head lolled to the side as she slowly came around. She blinked the blurriness away only to find her lying on freezing cold stone. She tried to move but she was held down by some very thick leather straps. She noticed her gun in pieces on the floor and the same fate had befallen to her phone. Alex felt a warm pool of blood under her stomach. "Damn." She whispered.<p>

"Hello." The demon appeared next to her with the dagger. This abrupt appearance sobered Alex. "Say goodbye." She didn't even Alex time to think about what she meant before the demon snapped the dagger in half.

"No!" Alex yelled. Rage surged through her as she squirmed ferociously in the restraints. "I'm gonna kill you!"

"Good luck with that, sweetheart." teased the demon tossing the remains aside. "But your last hope has gone." Alex growled. The Demon laughed, "Feisty."

"Why the hell do you want me?" She snarled, twisted her right wrist under the strap.

"I need a virgin to complete the ritual." The demon said casually. Alex laughed at her. "What?" She asked with a sneer. "You're not a virgin?"

"No, no, I am. But aren't sacrifices usually human?"

"Your point being?"

She had no idea Alex was a Shapeshifter, ha! "No reason. Just refreshing my memory." The demon gave her a confused look but brushed it aside. She held up a hand and Alex's knife appeared in her arms. "Oi! That's mine." Alex exclaimed.

"Not anymore." The demon grinned, "I like it." She was surprised that Alex wasn't a bit more shocked that she stole her knife but again the demon brushed it off.

She inhaled shakily as the demon strode over to her with the knife. The demon laughed. Suddenly the door burst open and Sam and Dean charged in with their guns hot. The Demon smiled at them and stabbed Alex directly in the stomach. At first Alex didn't know what happened but she quickly felt pain pooling in her stomach. She flashed in and out of consciousness as Dean and Sam unleashed bullets at the demon. The demon laughed as none of the bullets affected her- except for a few but she failed to notice. She flicked her wrist and the brothers hit the walls on either side of the barn.

Dean coughed bringing up some blood that tricked down his lips. He wiped his mouth and held up his gunless hands, "Crap." His gun was trampled on as the demon moved towards him. She grabbed Dean by the throat and hurled him against the wall like he was a ragdoll. He fell to the ground in the heap. She then turned her attention to Sam. The young Winchester froze when their eyes met, his gun aimed at her head. The demon smirked, its eyes flashed black and charged at Sam. A shot rang through the barn but the she shrugged it off. He quickly shot her again- it hit her in the shoulder but she tackled Sam to the ground and punched him hard in the face and gut. She flung him against the wall and landed by Dean.

"Sammy," Dean choked staring at his young brother. Dean looked up at the approaching demon, her black eyes blazed with fire. She grinned at their helplessness.

The demon's skin burned bright orange before she disintegrated into nothing. Behind her Alex had stabbed the source of the power, the tablet with a shard of dagger. She smiled elated. Dean met her gaze for a beat before she collapsed on the ground. He grunted as he stumbled to his feet. He limped over to her. Sam slowly followed behind him. One of his arms wrapped around his stomach.

"Alex!" Dean shouted skidding to a stop next to her, "You alright?"

Sam now had caught up to them and had Alex leaning against his knee. "Yup." Alex said with a breathy laugh. "I'm alright, despite, you know." She pointed at her torso.

Sam looked stunned. "You were stabbed!" He exclaimed looking at the bloody knife that was by Alex's hand. "By a silver knife! You should be dead."

At this Alex laughed. "Clearly I'm not dead and besides it's not silver. You really think I'd carry around a knife that could kill me if it got into the wrong hands?" Sam and Dean looked at each other, they guessed not. "Ha! No, I'm not that stupid." She attempted to sit up but Sam stopped her. "Sam, I'm alright. I'm a Shapeshifter remember?" She assured them, "Check the wound if you don't believe me."

Sam glanced at Dean who nodded. He lifted up Alex's bloodied shirt to see that the wound was already healing. After a breath Dean said, "Cool trick. You'll have to teach me."

Alex chuckled, "Thanks but it's something I can't teach." Then she gave them a serious expression, "Now if you boys don't mind I really want a beer."

Sam and Dean laughed and helped to sit her up. Then the three carefully stood up. Afterwards the Hunters carefully, and slowly, made their way back to the house. "By the way," Dean started, "How did you got out of those restraints?"

"A painful procedure called I'm gonna be an idiot and dislocate my wrists and ankles." Alex replied with a chuckled. Dean shook his head with a small smile. He quickly stopped once he realised what he was doing.


	10. Chapter 10

For probably the fiftieth time Sam asked Alex, "are you sure you're alright?" as they trudged through the forest towards the house. Sam walked beside Alex with Dean on the other side of her. Dean was quiet.

Alex sighed and replied with a chuckle, "Yes, Sam." She glanced down at the dried blood on her shirt then back at the trees, "I can heal a lot faster than humans remember?"

"Yeah but still." Sam answered with a shrug.

The three of them continued through the forest. A strange smell lingered in the air and Alex came to an abrupt stop. She stared at orange lit trees in the smoke ridden air. Sam and Dean followed her watery gaze. Her jaw and hands clenched. The brothers looked at her with worry and their hands moved to hold her back. She breathed shakily and tears started to fall. "No!" Alex shouted. She forced Sam and Dean's grip off her and sprinted towards her blazing house. "No, no!"

"Alex!" The brothers called, dashing after her. They sprinted through the smoke, dodging the burning trees and flamed which jumped from the house to the ground. Narrowly managing to reach Alex in time before she dived into burning the house, they grabbed her tight by the waist. They had to grab her arms as she struggled in their grasp to try and wriggle free.

"Let go of me!" She yelled attempting to kick them off her with her might.

Dean shouted, "Don't be an idiot! You'll get killed!"

Alex yelled, "I know!" squirming violently under their grasp. Alex almost wiggled free but Dean pinned her against a nearby tree. She tensed up and tried to push Dean off with a free hand but he didn't relent his pressure.

"I know your stuff is in there but running in is suicide!" He shouted forthright.

Alex snarled loudly and her eye flicked to the house. "But-"

"No buts!" Sam shouted matching Dean's temper, "We know everything you have is in there but look at the house," Alex broke eye contact with the Winchesters and looked at the house through the trees. Smoke and fire encased the house; no way would anyone survive going in the house not even a Shifter. She closed her eyes solemnly and looked down.

Dean released his arm from her chest and watched her slump against the tree. She swallowed hard passed the lump in her throat and opened her eyes. She clenched her fists and inhaled deeply blinking away the tears. She wiped her face with her sleeve. Alex put on a brave face and straightened up, "What do we do?"

"Get out of here before the fire department arrive and start asking questions." Dean answered earnestly.

Alex really didn't want to leave but Dean was right if they started asking questions they might learn more than they needed to. She steadied her breathing as she exhaled. She nodded regrettably and sniffed, "Ok."

They stepped away from the tree. "Look..." Sam started, "it's not much but," out from his back pocket he produced a folded photo, Alex looked at him confused, and he gave it to her. "I might have borrowed a photo."

Alex unfolded it tentatively. Her expression soften as she saw the photo- it was one of Marcus, Renée and young Alex crowded around a fireplace attempting to roast marshmallows. The corners of Alex's mouth twitched into a small smile. "Thanks." she said gratefully. She folded it and put it in her pocket.

Fire engines sounded in the distance. "Shit, we gotta go!" Dean exclaimed.

Alex composed herself enough to run to the Impala with Sam and Dean and drive away. Whilst they drove away she watched the flames and smoke dance around the crumbling, old house. A tear ran down her cheek but she quickly wiped it away with her smoky sleeve.

* * *

><p>The trio reached the furthest motel on the outside of city and booked in. Alex immediately collapsed on one of the beds, both emotionally and physically drained from the day. They couldn't blame her, she was shattered. Just as the rain began to patter against the shabby windows, Dean and Sam sat at the table talking about what they should do with Alex. They each had half a mind to let her come with them- if she wanted- but the other half wanted her to stay or at least help her get on her way away from the city. They talked about helping her get some of her belongings back but they both deemed it unsafe while the house was being investigated for the cause of the fire and no doubt where its inhabitant went to.<p>

"Letting her come with us could pose a risk." Dean had said. "She is completely shattered and God knows what she could do."

"Yeah but that doesn't mean she'd fall of the wagon and start killing." Sam did reply. "She might be fine."

"Might is the keyword there, Sammy. We really don't know what'll happen to her."

They continued talking until they got too tired, which came in the early morning, and went to bed.

A few hours later they awoke to the loud slam of the motel room door. The brothers jolted upright and leaped to their feet. Dean grabbed his gun and aimed it at the empty space in front of the door. "What?" He mumbled and raced to the window with Sam. Alex was hurrying down the street a few blocks down. By the way she hurried it was clear she didn't want to be seen or followed.

Sam headed for the door but Dean grabbed his arm to stop him. "Sammy, let her go. Clearly she doesn't want us going after her" Sam slowly nodded and pried off Dean's hand. "Just let her clear her head and figure out what to do." Sam sighed. "In the meantime we'll keep this place free in case she comes back when we're not here."

"Hang on," Sam said raising a finger, "you're saying we should go?"

Dean nodded his head, "Yeah. I don't think she's needs a Hunter presence here."

Sam thought for a moment before agreeing with Dean. "I doubt she trusts Hunters anymore then she did. It's like we're cursed."

Dean concurred, they certainly are. "Grab our bags and pack 'em into the Impala. I'll leave a note to tell her we're off."


	11. Chapter 11

_1 Week Later_

It was sunny day with no clouds in sight; Sam sat on the hood of the Impala like he would sit on a recliner, sipping a beer that Dean had chucked at him. Dean held a beer in his hand and wriggled onto the hood beside his brother, shoving Sam a bit too close to the edge. They had parked by the small lake in town where they recently finished a demon possession case. They decided to stay in town for a bit seeing as the weather was nice. Sam and Dean hadn't seen Alex since she left that night at the motel and they had no idea if she returned to read their note. She hadn't called or text but they hoped she was alright. As Dean sipped his beer he scanned the small row of shops across the road from them. A handful of people were going about their daily business buying stuff and souvenirs for their families.

"Dean." Sam said all of a sudden.

Dean looked at Sam and raised a eyebrow, "Yeah?"

Sam shook his head and gave Dean a disregarding wave, "Nothing. I just thought I saw..." he stared at a spot in the crowd trying to picture what he just saw, "never mind."

Dean raised an eyebrow of confusion at Sam but brushed it off and continued with his beer. Then suddenly Sam seized Dean's arm tightly with his free hand and pointed, with his beer holding hand, at a person whom exited from a bus. "Dude."

Dean stared at the person for a long time, all the while trying to figure out who it was. Then it hit him. Alex. She looked different. From what he could tell she still wore the leather jacket and her hair messily but she seemed happier.

Sam smiled. It was a week since they saw her. She looked fresh in the face as if nothing had happened from the previous week. She carried a green duffle bag with her. "Let's go say hi."

The brothers tossed their drinks into the nearest bin and crossed the road towards her. Dean and Sam passed the bus stop and followed her along the line of shops. She failed to notice them as she turned the corner and continued up the street. When the brothers walked around the corner she was gone. They looked confused but continued up the street. As they wondered past an alleyway, a hand reached out and grabbed Sam by the collar, pinning him against the wall. A black gun pointed at his head.

"Why ya following me Hunter?" Alex hissed, completely in the dark that it was Sam she had pinned against the brick.

"It's been a week and you greet us like this?" Sam asked with a smirk. His eyes glanced to his older brother who wore a small smile and stood behind Alex.

She mouthed Sam's name and she grinned. She let him go. Alex holstered her gun and turned to face the two. "Winchesters," she said with a hand on her hip. She looked a little sheepish having not contacted them.

They looked at each other in silence for a moment. Then smiles appeared on all their faces, even Dean's. "How've you been?" He asked after a quick handshake.

"Yeah. I've been alright." Alex said and she really was. She had calmed herself down about losing the house and started her life from scratch the best she could. She shopped for new clothes as all of hers had been burned beyond recognition and she made fake ID's for any cases she went on. Unfortunately she could only salvage some photos from her home but it was enough. Some was better than none.

"Good." The brothers chorused.

"So," Sam said stuffing his hands in his pockets, "What have you been doin'?"

"Cases here and there. I heard about this one but when I arrived two Hunters had already done the job."

"That was us." Dean said mildly gesturing to him and Sam with a hint of a smile. "It was quick and easy."

Alex nodded, "Good, one less Demon to mess with." A pause followed as she fiddled with her coat sleeve and bit her lip. "I overheard you guys taking about me and whether or not I should come with you," she glanced between the two brothers, "and after a long think I've decided to take you up on your offer. If you were alright with it I'd like to tag along with you guys for a while." She fiddled with her hair.

Dean looked taken aback by the idea, he completely forgot and to be honest he didn't really want her to come with him. On the other hand Sam didn't mind, they could always do with an extra hand and maybe, just maybe Dean and Alex might become friends. "Only for a while though," continued Alex, "if that's okay." She shifted on her feet.

After a moment of silent contemplation from the brothers they nodded their heads "Okay. You can." and Alex smiled with a small hop. Dean voiced his worries to her but Alex understood where he was coming from. Most Shapeshifters can't be trusted and Alex knew that. Sam, in contrast, was more than happy to have someone else with Hunting experience ride along with them. But little did they know that Alex would stick around for more than a few cases.


End file.
